Long-term outcomes in kidney transplantation (KT) have not significantly improved during the past twenty years. Despite being a leading cause of graft failure, glomerular disease (GD) recurrence remains poorly understood, due to heterogeneity in disease pathogenesis and clinical presentation, reliance on histopathology to confirm disease recurrence, and the low incidence of individual GD subtypes. Large, international cohorts of patients with GD are urgently needed to better understand the disease pathophysiology, predictors of recurrence, and response to therapy. The Post-TrANsplant GlOmerular Disease (TANGO) study is an observational, multicenter cohort study initiated in January 2017 that aims to: 1) characterize the natural history of GD after KT, 2) create a biorepository of saliva, blood, urine, stools and kidney tissue samples, and 3) establish a network of patients and centers to support novel therapeutic trials. The study includes 15 centers in America and Europe. Enrollment is open to patients with biopsy-proven GD prior to transplantation, including IgA nephropathy, membranous nephropathy, focal and segmental glomerulosclerosis, atypical hemolytic uremic syndrome, dense-deposit disease, C3 glomerulopathy, complement- and IgG-positive membranoproliferative glomerulonephritis or membranoproliferative glomerulonephritis type I-III (old classification). During phase 1, patient data will be collected in an online database. The biorepository (phase 2) will involve collection of samples from patients for identification of predictors of recurrence, biomarkers of disease activity or response to therapy, and novel pathogenic mechanisms. Finally, through phase 3, we will use our multicenter network of patients and centers to launch interventional studies. Most prior studies of post-transplant GD recurrence are single-center and retrospective, or rely upon registry data that frequently misclassify the cause of kidney disease. Systematically determining GD recurrence rates and predictors of clinical outcomes is essential to improving post-transplant outcomes. Furthermore, accurate molecular phenotyping and biomarker development will allow better understanding of individual GD pathogenesis, and potentially identify novel drug targets for GD in both native and transplanted kidneys. The TANGO study has the potential to tackle GD recurrence through a multicenter design and a comprehensive biorepository.

Background: Hemodialysis (HD) and plasmapheresis (PE) are usually performed independently on patients who require renal replacement therapy. We analyzed our experience using a technique that performs both modalities simultaneously. Methods: Thirty-six patients who were treated with 287 tandem PE and HD (TPH) sessions (mean 7.97 ± 5.6 per patient) were included. PE was connected 30 min after HD started. The mean HD blood flow was 313.7 ± 44 mL/min, the mean PE blood flow was 141 ± 25 mL/min, and the duration of TPH was no longer than 240 min. The heparin dose was similar to that used for a standard HD procedure. Results: In 287 TPH sessions performed, 10.45% experienced minor complications. There were significant changes in mean blood pressure after connection of the PE system. However, these differences were not clinically relevant since patients remained asymptomatic and they did not require saline infusion. At the end of treatment, 38.9% of patients were no longer dependent on dialysis. Conclusions: Our results suggest that TPH is a safe and effective treatment that decreases exposure to an extracorporeal circuit, reducing the risks that are associated with anticoagulation agents and improving the comfortability of the patient.

Frailty is a concept that has been mainly developed in geriatrics and it came from the need of identifying subjects at risk to develop complications when they faced a stressful event. Frail patients have higher risk of mortality, poor outcomes and disability, and this is independent from their age or comorbidities. Chronic kidney disease patients present with high prevalence of frailty, especially those who are in renal replacement therapy. Frail or pre-frail patients on the kidney transplant waiting list represent 20-30%, and these patients are proven to have poorer results after the transplant, which is a stressful event itself. Tools for frailty assessment, both scales or indexes, may be useful to identify which subjects might be at risk for complications after transplant, and this is necessary to adapt our clinical practice and minimize morbidity. The most used frailty scale in kidney patients is Fried scale, which is based in five phenotypic items. Besides that, knowing frail population allows potential interventions such as prehabilitation while the patient is waiting for the kidney transplant, which the aim of improving their vulnerability prior to transplant and, therefore, optimizing results after transplant. More studies are needed amongst kidney patients to improve and prevent frailty.

Diabetes mellitus is one of the most important causes of chronic kidney disease (CKD). In patients with advanced diabetic kidney disease, kidney transplantation (KT) with or without a pancreas transplant is the treatment of choice. We aimed to review current data regarding kidney and pancreas transplant options in patients with both type 1 and 2 diabetes and the outcomes of different treatment modalities. In general, pancreas transplantation is associated with long-term survival advantages despite an increased short-term morbidity and mortality risk. This applies to simultaneous pancreas kidney transplantation or pancreas after KT compared to KT alone (either living donor or deceased). Other factors as living donor availability, comorbidities, and expected waiting time have to be considered whens electing one transplant modality, rather than a clear benefit in survival of one strategy vs. others. In selected type 2 diabetic patients, data support cautious utilization of simultaneous pancreas kidney transplantation when a living kidney donor is not an option. Pancreas and kidney transplantation seems to be the treatment of choice for most type 1 diabetic and selected type 2 diabetic patients.